He picked up just the one NZ cap, while that's still a big achievement, what stopped him achieving more?

The scrummaging. He spent lots of time travelling with the All Blacks and at camps, where he came under the tutelage of scrum coach Mike Cron, but they just never seemed game to give him another test.

He played in two end-of-year tour matches in 2017, but that was as close as he came to that second cap.

How well do you think he will adapt to the English game?

Hopefully quite well. He’s a hugely likeable guy who trains hard and really cares about the teams he’s playing for. He’s tended to be a starting player here, but would provide quality impact off the bench too.

Have you had any dealings with Jeff? What is he like as a bloke?

Top man. Very witty. Modest, happy to laugh at himself. In fact you rarely see Jeff without a big smile on his face.

Devoted to his family and God and just a really genuine guy who team-mates and fans should take to.

Wasps' tighthead options ahead of 2019/20 season

What are the Hurricanes hopes and expectations for 2019 and how key will Jeff be in those?

They expect to win the comp and Jeff will be integral to that.

A much-improved set piece is among this season’s stated aims after a semi-final in Christchurch last year where they got pumped [Hurricanes were defeated 30-12 by eventual winners Crusaders]. It was that night that potentially put paid to Jeff’s All Blacks aspirations.

If the Hurricanes' forward pack fronts, the backs will run riot this season.

Of course NZ rugby remains in great shape but is there a concern about the number of Kiwis going north?

There’s lots of hand-wringing from people with nothing else to write about or quiet phones on radio call-ins, but it’s really not much of an issue.

Guys have always gone and always been replaced. And rarely is anyone lost that wasn’t on the outer anyway.

Lima Sopoaga joined Wasps last summer from Super 14 club Highlanders

Charles Piutau was a slight exception and maybe Luke McAlister before that, but it’s rare. On the whole players still dream of being great All Blacks, and winning world cups, and you have to stay put to do that.

There will be occasions when guys from a Pacific Island background, such as Lima Sopoaga, know a European contract can change their family’s circumstances and everyone applauds that.

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But, year after year, the schools and age-group systems keep producing guys who step straight into provincial and Super Rugby. Some will come to nothing, others will end up in rugby league or chasing rugby contracts in Europe and Japan, but the bulk of the good ones don't go until they've made valuable contribution, the kind Lima, Jeff and Brad Shields have made.